Coronado Global Resources, an Australian mining group focused on metallurgical coal, has entered in talks with Peabody Energy, the largest thermal coal producer in the United States, over a potential combination transaction. Peabody sought to combine its assets in 2020 with its smaller rival Arch Coal, the second largest US coal producer, but the deal was rejected by the Federal Trade Commission.
Peabody's thermal coal sales declined by 1.5% to 122.6 Mt in 2021, with 88.4 Mt of Powder River Basin (+1.4%), 17.3 Mt of seaborne thermal (-8.9%) and 16.9 Mt of other US thermal coal (-7.6%). Only 9.6 Mt of thermal coal was exported in 2021 (11 Mt in 2020). Coronado sold 2.7 Mt of thermal coal in 2021 (-18%) in Australia. In 2021, US coal and lignite production reached 523 Mt.